Jewelle! Happy Birthday from Deb who requested Tom Hiddleston… dancing. Are you sure? Because …some things you can’t unsee.

And for Laurie from your sister Amanda – Happy Birthday! Here are some recent shots of Coach Taylor, Kyle Chandler, because it&rsquo…      

Dear Gossips,

The Divergent Series: Insurgent opens this weekend. Shailene Woodley and Theo James have been on promotion for it for the last couple of weeks. As you know, if you’ve been reading this blog for a few years, I was big on the first book (review here), then medium on the seco…      

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After Joan Rivers passed last fall, E! really scrambled to get Fashion Police back together in time for awards season. They hired Kathy Griffin in Joan’s place, but it’s clear that Kathy wasn’t comfortable with the show’s format or content. Since quitting Fashion Police late last week, Kathy has said, in so many different ways, that the show hasn’t changed with the times and that the jokes are rude without being topical or funny. Of course Kelly Osbourne quit before Kathy did, citing the joke that Giuliana Rancic made (and for which she apologized) about Zendaya’s dreadlocks. Kathy has said that she didn’t know ahead of time that Kelly was leaving, and that Giuliana was just reciting a line that was written for her.

There are only two panelists left on the show, Giuliana Rancic and Brad Goreski. Fashion Police was scheduled to return at the end of this month, but it’s been shelved until September. The President of NBCUniversal Lifestyle Networks Group, Frances Berwick, told The Hollywood Reporter that while they weren’t surprised by Kathy Griffin’s exit, they were not prepared for her criticism. They’re taking it seriously though, to the point where Fashion Police will be taken off the air until they have time to regroup. Here’s more, from The Hollywood Reporter.

The Hollywood Reporter can reveal that E! will put Fashion Police on an extended hiatus. The three remaining episodes scheduled to shoot this spring will be scrapped, giving the team time to recast and reboot. The new plan is to return in the fall with six or seven episodes tied to major events, including the Emmys.

“With the benefit of hindsight, we definitely brought it back too soon,” says Berwick, who added E! to her portfolio mere weeks after Rivers’ September death. In the months since, she has had to deal with a barrage of controversies, including backlash to the network’s “mani cam” feature on red carpets (Julianne Moore called it “humiliating” and other stars refused to participate) and an #AskHerMore Twitter campaign against fashion-focused interviews. In addition, there’s the will-they-or-won’t-they Bruce Jenner transgender docuseries (insiders say they will) and the Fashion Police fallout that began when Rancic suggested singer Zendaya’s dreadlocks “smelled like patchouli oil … or weed” on the show’s post-Oscars telecast. The controversies come as NBCUniversal cable chief Bonnie Hammer has said she wants E! to take a more “aspirational” tone, and they highlight a subtle shift in celebrity culture and E!’s role in what The New York Times called on March 15 its “untenable setup that one day reveres celebrities on the red carpet and the next day marches them onto a gangplank and pushes them into the water.”

Berwick says she and her team, along with Fashion Police executive producer Melissa Rivers, considered canceling the show in the wake of the departures. But ultimately they concluded they weren’t willing to give up on the 5-year-old franchise, and its nearly 1?million loyal viewers (though the show has shed viewers without Joan Rivers). “There was a lot of noise and drama that are really not helpful or additive to the creative process, but there’s a real love for this show,” explains Berwick, who adds with a laugh, “Given the focus on this, the ratings should really be the size of The Walking Dead…”

Still, the E! executives acknowledge that they have heard the criticism and are assessing the tone of the network’s red-carpet coverage. “You want to be evolving with the times, and we are really taking the mani-cam question very seriously,” says Berwick, who notes that the latter started as a “cute” thing. “If people don’t want to do it, they shouldn’t be forced to do it.” (The network did not incorporate the manicure camera into its Oscars preshow telecast.)

At the same time, she also suggests that E! has become a target for the entire awards-season charade, which seems to get bigger each year. “There’s a lot that’s frivolous about the whole Oscar, Emmy, Golden Globe parade, and then at the heart of it, there’s some great, creative work,” Berwick continues. “E! is not a network that takes itself seriously.” She cites The Soup host Joel McHale and his weekly lampooning of TV stars, including E!’s own Kardashian family.

“To the extent that this has all gotten very intense and serious — it’s meant to be fun,” she says. “When it stops being fun or if we think that we’re offending or crossing a line, absolutely, that’s the time to re-evaluate and that’s what we’re doing, frankly, with things like the mani cam.”

[From The Hollywood Reporter]

I agree that E! is an easy target and that it’s not always fair. They got rid of the mani cam when actresses objected, and they’re trying to change. They’re also the one of the few networks to really dare to call out the ridiculousness of the entertainment industry. I hope they don’t touch The Soup at all.

Fashion Police is fun, but maybe it’s time to change the format. It’s not the same without Joan, and I respect that they didn’t just throw a Kardashian or two on there and carry on. There is definitely a call for fashion assessment and commentary. The #AskHerMore campaign seems to ignore the fact that the red carpet is all about fashion and jewelry. The actresses do so many interviews prior to an event, they have plenty of time to discuss their projects and just a few opportunities to talk fashion. It’s not about diminishing the women, it’s about acknowledging the work that went into their looks. Sometimes all that work adds up to a hill of beans, and someone’s got to say it.

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photo credit: WENN.com and Getty Images

These cutie pies are having a blast.

It looks like the Kardashian’s had a little get-together yesterday, as Khloé Kardashian couldn’t help but share some cute pictures of North West and Penelope Disick. In one of the pictures, it looks like the two girls are having a blast and doing what young kids do best — exploring! In the second picture Khloé shared on her Instagram, we get to see their cute little tennis shoes. Khloe captioned the picture:

“Happy Feet!!! Kourt Rob North Penelope KoKo”

It looks like they were all having a blast and enjoying time together. So sweet!

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I’m trying to remember if I’ve ever used the phrase “the common woman” in all seriousness. I think I might have written it sarcastically, to make fun of some peasant-shading elitist, but I can’t say that it’s a phrase that comes rolling off the (peasant) tongue for me. But then again, I’m not constantly defending myself against charges of unbridled elitism. To be fair to Gwyneth Paltrow, she was not the first person in this CNN Money interview – she was asked how she thinks she has anything to say to “the common woman.” As in, the CNN interviewer asked her that. So… while I’m not giving Gwyneth a total pass, I think she was just rephrasing the question. I also think she truly believes that she has an enormous amount in common with the commoners. Some assorted quotes from Gwyneth’s CNN interview:

The purpose of Goop: “What we try to do at Goop is curate and to edit. We know that a woman’s time is her most precious resource and we want to multitask, get a lot done, and what we want to do is provide the best solutions.”

The common woman: “I’m incredibly close to the common woman in that I’m a woman and I’m a mother and we all are in a physical body with beating hearts with compassion and love we are all seekers…we all want fulfillment, we all want to live our best lives. We want to be healthy and happy and squeeze the most we can out of life. I think that’s all women.”

The perception that Goop is only for rich people: “I always say that when people make that false assumption, it’s because people haven’t actually gone to the site and seen what we’re selling and seen what we’re about… I think the idea is that we’re going to find the best thing and where it is at any price point.”

Don’t call her a lifestyle guru: “I see myself as an actor and a mother and as an entrepreneur. I don’t see myself as a guru at all. I’m not a guru because I’m the one asking the questions. I’m not purporting to know anything.”

[From E! News]

She certainly has her talking points down – she said some similar things in her recent Wall Street Journal interview too. Do you really think Gwyneth Paltrow is down with the common woman? I think it’s interesting that she’s trying to seem like she is. I think it’s interesting that this is her new image. She’s no longer the snotty elitist deigning to speak to the common people, she’s trying to say that we are all women and we all go through the same crap. Are you buying it? And by “buying it” I mean “$5000 Goop-curated booty shorts.”

Photos courtesy of Fame/Flynet.

As I mentioned in yesterday’s Duchess Kate post, Kate isn’t done with her public schedule. It’s surprising, isn’t it? I think most of us expected Kate to slow down once she got into the final stretch of her second pregnancy, but to her credit, she’s still clocking in a significant number of public appearances (“a significant number” = maybe three a week). Still, we wanted her to work more and she’s really doing it. Credit to her. And to the new Kensington Palace PR guy, who really seems to have gotten through to Kate in particular.

Kate was out and about in Woolrich today, visiting the Brookhill Children’s Centre and meeting with lots of kids and volunteers. Good for her. Kate also wore a new dress! Yay for something we haven’t seen before! Kate’s polka-dotted black and white wrap-dress is by ASOS. Apparently, it only costs $63. That’s VERY affordable. A few things: Kate has a real penchant for wrap dresses even while pregnant. The style of this dress reminds me of her Issa-loving pre-marriage days. The dress is also just a tad shorter than it should be (and she had been doing so well with her hemlines!). Also: chica loves polka dots and I just don’t get it. But that’s my thing, I fully admit that. I never think polka dots look sophisticated. But for Kate, for her style, this is a win. As for the black coat (which she actually TOOK OFF when she went inside, shock!), according to one of the royal correspondents, “The Duchess of Cambridge’s black coat today was made by her private dressmaker. She has had it for a while.”

What else? I think it’s an interesting choice she consistently makes, to wear black clothing around children. Maybe it’s practical – if sticky-handed kids stain her dress, it won’t show. Maybe. And she wore her hair down and I don’t have a problem with it. It’s a daytime event, she was mostly inside, so why not have her hair down? You can read more about the event here.

Photos courtesy of WENN.

This is so adorable! Kim Zolciak’s husband, NFL star Kroy Biermann, 29, shot a video of KJ and Kane going for a ride in their battery-powered ATV. Of course, the video was just so cute that Kim couldn’t help but sharing the video on Instagram. She even slows down the video near the end, so you can see KJ smiling and waving while in slow motion. This kid is so happy that he’s smiling from ear-to-ear. Kim captioned the video: “I can’t #MyBoys #ThatSmileThough #HeBarelyGetsTimeOutCauseOfThatSmile #SoPure #KaneHasRocksInHisHandHeWontPutThemDown” Click on this link to watch the video. However, we must warn you, it’s absolutely too-cute-for-words!

As we discussed earlier this week, Heather Mills spat out some words about her ex-husband Paul McCartney during an interview on an Irish chat show. Heather had nothing but shade and crazy, claiming that Paul was just “a normal guy that happened to write a few cool songs in the 60?s and a few in 70?s.” She also claimed that the kids have no idea who Paul is and that’s why he has to work with people like Kanye West and Rihanna, to have any kind of musical relevancy. As I said, she’s a massive pill.

So it was with great pleasure that I read blowhard Piers Morgan’s Daily Mail column, which was all about Heather and how he’s known her for a long time. He was also a guest on the same Irish chat show AND he claims he was the one to introduce her to Paul McCartney back in the day. The whole piece is an easy, bitchy read – go here to read the whole thing. My favorite parts:

Introducing Heather to Paul: “I introduced Heather to Paul at a charity event in 1999. It was a moment that his daughter Stella later thanked me for with the immortal words: ‘Dad’s really grateful, you cost him $50 million.’

Their divorce: “After their bitter divorce battle, in which Heather tried to single-handedly destroy Paul’s reputation, I issued a public apology to the singer, declaring: ‘I’m sorry Macca for ever introducing you to this little monster.’ She rang me the next day, screaming abuse down the phone. ‘Why the f*** are you doing this to me?!!!’…After more foul-mouthed invective, she suddenly paused, lowered her voice and sneered: ‘I know why you’re doing this… Because you’re a Paul fan.’

His assessment of Heather in general: “She’s a total fantasist. An inveterate liar for whom the truth never gets in the way of a self-aggrandising yarn. Don’t take my word for it, take the words of the judge in her divorce whose damning conclusions were effectively that she’s a greedy, ghastly creature prone to ‘make-belief’. He also said there was no actual evidence to support her much-vaunted claim to donate most of her earnings to charity. I believe Heather married Paul McCartney for his fame, money and to further her own career. The same Paul McCartney she now so gleefully trashes.”

[From The Daily Mail]

Piers goes on to say that he briefly met Paul’s third wife, “a delightful American lady called Nancy Shevell” and that Nancy is utterly lovely and never even name-checks her husband for special service. Obviously, Piers Morgan is an utter starf—ker and snob, but on Heather Mills, I’ll take his word for it. I think he’s probably dead-on about her.

Photos courtesy of WENN.

Get ready, because this is guaranteed to make you laugh!

Teen Mom 2 star, Jenelle Evans, 23, took to Instagram, because her son, Jace, wanted to share a special message with everyone about zombies. He notifies us all that zombies are bad, and that he plans on spanking their butts! Jenelle captioned the hilarious video:

“Jace had a message for everyone about zombies.”

To watch the video in its entirety, you can click on this link.

So, who’s going to help Jace out by spanking some zombie?

My general rule of thumb on political stories is to only cover them if there’s some kind of celebrity or juicy-gossip angle. This story has a celebrity angle, in some really amazing ways. This isn’t even the first time I’ve written about Rep. Aaron Schock (R-Illinois) – last year, Rep. Schock was “outed” online after he seemed to be living his life one way (allegedly he’s gay) while supporting fervently anti-LGBT legislation. Anyway, Rep. Schock resigned in disgrace yesterday from the House of Representatives. Rep. Schock has been mired in some pretty amazing controversy for several months, and it kept getting progressively worse for the young congressman with each passing day. Schock was supposed to be one the bright future leaders for the GOP – he’s handsome, adept at social media, friendly and not a rage monster. Moms could look at him and say “what a nice young man!” Then it all went to hell. Here’s a laundry list of Schock’s transgressions.

*The whole scandal exploded when the Washington Post published photos and a story about Rep. Schock’s crazy Downton Abbey-themed Congressional office. Go here to see the photos of his office. When I say “Downton Abbey-themed” I mean red walls, black candles, gilded sconces, crystal chandeliers and pheasant feathers.

*It wasn’t just that Schock made the questionable choice to decorate his DC office like a Downton Abbey set – taxpayers initially paid thousands of dollars for the decorations. Schock had to reimburse the government for $40,000 (for pheasant feathers and gilded sconces).

*Schock got thousands of dollars in fraudulent reimbursement for mileage (on his car). That’s thousands of dollars defrauded from the taxpayers.

*He used public funds to charter private planes so he could watch the Chicago Bears play.

*He spent thousands of dollars on other questionable “business trips.” The money came from public funds AND campaign funds. And he liked to charter private planes for every trip.

*He spent campaign money on massages. And taking his congressional interns to see a Katy Perry concert.

When he announced his resignation he said: “Today, I am announcing my resignation as a Member of the United States House of Representatives effective March 31. I do this with a heavy heart. Serving the people of the 18th District is the highest and greatest honor I have had in my life. The constant questions over the last six weeks have proven a great distraction that has made it too difficult for me to serve the people of the 18th District with the high standards that they deserve and which I have set for myself. I have always sought to do what’s best for my constituents and I thank them for the opportunity to serve.”

It’s widely believed that Schock is only resigning now so he won’t have to face a long and embarrassing investigation by the House Ethics Committee. The committee doesn’t have the jurisdiction on ex-House members. But I’m guessing that some federal prosecutor of even a local Illinois prosecutor is taking a hard look at all of this.

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Photos courtesy of Getty, Men’s Health, Aaron Schock’s social media.